Fringe
Fringe was a FOX network science fiction\drama series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci. The show aired from September 9, 2008 to January 18, 2013, lasting for five seasons & 100 episodes. It was produced by Bad Robot Productions and Warner Bros. Television. Plot The series centered on the members of the fictional Fringe Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, based in Boston, Massachusetts, under the supervision of Homeland Security. The team uses fringe science and FBI investigative techniques to investigate a series of unexplained, often ghastly occurrences, which are related to mysteries surrounding a parallel universe. Cast *Anna Torv as Olivia Dunham *Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop *John Noble as Dr. Walter Bishop *Jasika Nicole as Astrid Farnsworth *Lance Reddick as Phillip Broyles (seasons 1–4; recurring season 5) *Blair Brown as Nina Sharp (seasons 1–4; recurring season 5) *Kirk Acevedo as Charlie Francis (seasons 1–2; recurring season 3) *Seth Gabel as Lincoln Lee (guest star seasons 2 and 5; recurring season 3; starring season 4) *Mark Valley as John Scott (season 1) Production Conception Co-created by J. J. Abrams, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, "Fringe" is produced by Bad Robot in association with Warner Bros. Television, as part of a commitment that Abrams previously made with the studio. At the time, Abrams was working with Orci and Kurtzman on the "Star Trek" film, and met at one of the Comic-Cons during the production of "Star Trek" to brainstorm ideas for the show. Abrams later brought Bryan Burk, a producer on several of his films, to help with developing the series. Abrams's inspiration for "Fringe" came from a range of sources, including the writings of Michael Crichton, the film "Altered States" films by David Cronenberg, and the television series, "The X-Files" & "The Twilight Zone." Orci stated that the show is a "new kind of storytelling", combining procedural shows such as "Law & Order", and an "extremely serialized and very culty" series like "Lost." The procedural aspect was chosen because, at the time of its premiere, six of the ten top shows were procedural in nature; Orci stated that "you have to be a fool not to go study what it is that they're doing". Abrams had originally considered naming the series The Lab, as they had envisioned Walter's laboratory to be "the epicenter of the conversation", and where "anything is possible". Though the team saw this as a way of presenting "mystery of the week"-type episodes, they wanted to focus more on how these stories were told in unpredictable ways rather than the actual mystery, recognizing that most of their target audience has seen such mysteries before through previous shows and films. Instead, they wanted their storytelling to be original and unexpected, and, as claimed by Kurtzman, one of the most challenging aspects of developing the individual episodes. Serialization of the show was important to tell their overall story with larger plot elements, but Abrams recognized the difficulties that his earlier serialized shows, such as Lost and Alias, had in attracting and maintaining viewers that had not seen these shows from the start or who missed episodes sporadically. For Fringe, Abrams instead sought to create, as stated by David Itzkoff of the New York Times, "a show that suggested complexity but was comprehensible in any given episode". The writers aimed to balance a line between stand-alone episodes, a factor requested by Fox, and a heavily serialized show; they balanced these by moving the serialization aspect to the growth and development of their characters. This gave them the ability to write self-contained episodes that still contained elements related to the overall mythos. However, as production continued, the creative staff found the show itself took on a more serialized nature and opted towards this approach in later seasons while still balancing self-contained episodes. One method was by introducing overarching themes that individual episodes could be tied to, such as "The Pattern" in Season 1, providing information repeatedly about the larger plot over the course of several episodes or seasons. Abrams also created characters whose alliances to the larger narrative were clear, avoiding a similar problem that had occurred during the first and second seasons of Alias. A final step taken was to script out all of the major long-running plot elements, including the show's finale, prior to full-time production. Abrams contrasted this to the process used in "Lost", where ideas like character flashbacks and the hatch from the second season were introduced haphazardly and made difficulties in defining when they should be presented to the viewers. Instead, with "Fringe", they were able to create "clearly defined goalposts" (in Itzkoff's words) that could be altered as necessary with network and seasonal changes but always provided a clear target for the overarching plot. These approaches also allowed the team to introduce unique plot elements to be introduced in time that would have altered the show's fate if known at the start. Abrams stated that "There are certain details that are hugely important that I believe, if shared, will destroy any chance of actually getting on the air." Abrams noted that they are able to benefit from "how open Fox as a network has been to a show that is embracing the weirdness and the long-term stories that we want to tell". During the third season, executive producer Jeff Pinkner noted that "We have six to eight seasons worth of material. We see it as having certain chapters that would enrich the overall story, but aren't necessary to tell the overall story. God willing, the network allows us the time to tell our complete story." As part of the larger story, the writers have placed elements in earlier episodes that are referenced in episodes seasons later. For example, in the first-season episode "The Ghost Network", the Fringe team encounters an amber-like substance, which is later shown to be a critical means to combat the breakdown of the parallel universe and eventually for the same in the prime universe with the third-season episode "6B". Pinkner compared this aspect to "planting seeds", some which they know how they plan to use later in the show's story, while others they can find ways of incorporating into these later episodes. He further attributed these elements as part of the "world building" to flesh out the show beyond episodic content. The producers have stated that when the show's mythology is introduced, it is not simply there to tie episodes together, but "to provide answers that generate consequences". Certain elements of the show's mythology were established from the start. The parallel universe was always part of the original concept, though aspects of when and how to introduce it were tackled as the show proceeded. The idea of Peter being from the parallel universe came early into the show's production, but this came to lead the team to jokingly refer to Peter as their "hatch" (one of the early mysteries in "Lost"). As with the hatch in "Lost", they initially had no idea how to introduce this within the show. FOX's Reilly was also initially concerned about the parallel universe aspect, but as the show progressed into the first season and found its groove, the concept was readily accepted. The most poignant introduction of the parallel universe was in the conclusion of the first-season finale, "There's More Than One of Everything", where they showed the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were still standing in the parallel universe, a concept introduced by writer Andrew Kreisberg as an iconic image to leave viewers with; Jackson stated, "I don't know that we've ever had a better visual or a better cliff-hanger." Other mythos elements were devised as the series progressed. The writers had originally envisioned only spending small portions of episodes within the parallel universe, but as they wrote these episodes within Season three, they brought out the idea of setting entire episodes within the parallel universe. This necessitated the development of the alternate versions of the main characters, which Pinkner considered "a great playground just for imagination". The actors themselves found this concept exciting, as it allowed them to play different characters but with the same background and considered it a creative challenges; similarly, having Peter erased from the timeline as part of the finale for season three was an idea that grew over the course of that season. The writers were aware this would be a risky move but felt the idea was very appropriate for the show, and opted to write towards this after considering all the consequences. Pinkner noted that this gave them an opportunity to "reset the character relationships" and determine the key aspects that would remain without Peter, as well as "making the audience uncomfortable at times". The cast was not initially sold with the idea, but came around as the fourth season progressed. Production After developing the core concepts of "Fringe", Abrams began to seek studios to develop the show; Abrams' past successes led to Warner Bros. Television and the Fox Television Network to quickly jump on board the project. Peter Roth (the chief executive of Warner Bros. Television) had been actively seeking to bring any Abrams' project to his studio, and heard Abrams' pitch for Fringe at a dinner meeting in August 2007. Similarly, Kevin Reilly, the entertainment chairman at Fox, knew that it was critical for him to bring the next Abrams' project to his network, and worked with Roth to assure this would happen. Jeff Pinkner was selected to act as the head showrunner and executive producer. Abrams noted that he trusts Pinkner after working together with him on "Alias" and "Lost." Pinkner became interested in the show during a visit to the set of Star Trek, during which Abrams was discussing the concept of "Fringe" with Orci and Kurtzman, knowing that they would not be involved in the direct production of the work. Abrams pitched the idea to Pinkner, who was intrigued by the importance of characters in a science fiction drama. In season two, J.H. Wyman was brought on as executive producer and showrunner with Pinkner. Wyman had been a science fiction enthusiast but had worried that he had not written anything in that genre but after learning about the concept of the show, felt his role as an executive producer was "a match made in heaven". Michael Giacchino (Abrams' frequent collaborator) composed the music for the pilot of Fringe, before handing over duties to his assistants Chad Seiter and Chris Tilton; Tilton took over scoring duties from season two onward. While Giacchino retains an on-screen credit, Abrams himself wrote the series theme music. The two-hour pilot episode, filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, cost a total of $10 million to create. A basement of an old church was used for Walter's lab set in the pilot, and this set was replicated at other film sites in New York and Vancouver when the show moved. The lab set was designed by Carol Spier, the production designer for several of Cronenberg's films. John Noble called his character's lab "the heart and soul of Fringe", so consequently, "That has to remain constant." A cow used in the pilot episode had to be recast when production of Season 1 was moved to New York, due to livestock restrictions preventing it from being brought from Canada to the United States. Other locations used in the first season included other universities to stage for the Harvard University campus, where Walter's lab is located. These included Pratt Institute and Yale University, including its Old Campus (particularly Phelps Hall and Durfee Hall), Branford College, and the exterior of Yale Law School, University of Toronto's University College, Brooklyn College. On February 21, 2009, it was reported that in the event that Fringe would be renewed for a second season, the show would move production to Vancouver from New York City as a cost-cutting measure. Executive producer Jeff Pinkner explained: "We want to stay in New York, New York has been incredibly good to us. It feels like we're being kicked out of the city. I know we're not, but they're making it impossible for us to afford doing the show ... Our New York crew is spectacular, they've worked their butts off to make the show look great. But it looks like New York is not renewing a tax credit that makes it possible to make our budget in New York. So it looks like, out of necessity, we'll have to leave New York, which is not anything we are welcoming." As plans were being made to move the production to Canada, the New York state legislature passed continuation of the film and tax credits, as planned. Upon productions moving to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for season two, the University of British Columbia now stands in for Harvard. The area around New Westminster often serves as filming locations for Fringe stories that take place in the parallel universe. Prior to the start of production for the show's fifth season, Pinkner announced that he was leaving the production of "Fringe" to pursue other projects; Wyman would remain as the sole showrunner for the show. Casting The show's main characters, Olivia, Peter, and Walter, were core of the concept for "Fringe." The creators recognized early that "the idea that telling a father-son story and a relationship story was a really compelling one and a very accessible one", according to Kurtzman. They were able to provide the characters with backstories that, like with other long-term plot elements, could be alluded to over several episodes and seasons. The characters would also contrast with the typical procedural genre show; rather than having clearly defined roles episode to episode, they instead "have an emotional memory and an emotional investment", as stated by Orci; this also allowed for, as necessary, characters to be removed or introduced to the show and have a larger impact on the other characters. The first actors cast were Kirk Acevedo and Mark Valley, who portrayed FBI agents Charlie Francis and John Scott, respectively. John Noble and Lance Reddick, who play Dr. Walter Bishop and Homeland Security agent Phillip Broyles, joined the cast later on. Casting of Anna Torv, Blair Brown, and Jasika Nicole, who play Olivia Dunham, Massive Dynamic employee Nina Sharp, and Astrid Farnsworth, a federal agent and assistant to Olivia Dunham, respectively, followed; while Joshua Jackson, who plays Peter Bishop, was the last main character to be cast. Jackson auditioned for James T. Kirk in Abrams' "Star Trek" and believed this is what impressed the producer to cast him in his television project, though Abrams later clarified that it was recalling his previous experience with working with Jackson on his television series "Felicity." For the principal and recurring actors, they were all intrigued by the script for the pilot, comparing it to a two-hour-long movie, as well as Abrams' reputation. On April 8, 2009, it was announced that Leonard Nimoy would appear as Walter Bishop's former lab partner, Dr. William Bell in the first season's finale, which explores the existence of an ominous parallel universe; this choice led one reviewer to question if Fringe's plot might be a homage to the Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror", which explored the concept of an alternate reality referred to as a "mirror universe", and an evil version of Spock distinguished by a goatee. Nimoy returned as Dr. Bell for an extended arc, and according to Orci, Bell is "the beginning of the answers to even bigger questions." He reprised his role in the second-season finale, where his character and Walter met for a "showdown". Nimoy's character is apparently dead after the season finale, having used himself to help Walter, Peter and the Alternate Olivia back to the prime universe. As he had retired from acting, it was thought unlikely that his character would return. However, in February of 2011, he announced his definite plan to return to the show and reprise his role as William Bell. Nimoy returned to voice the character in the animated segments of the third-season episode "Lysergic Acid Diethylamide" and appeared as a computer-generated character in the fourth-season episode "Letters of Transit". In the two-part finale of the fourth season, Nimoy returned to play the ultimate antagonist of the alternate timeline story arc. Reception Early reception through the first season of "Fringe" was generally lukewarm, with many noting its "lackluster" start and the "dullness" of the characters. However, changes in the approach and storytelling of the show in the second and subsequent seasons led to more positive critical reception and made it a media favorite. As a whole, the series was well received by the critics and has developed a cult following. First season The pilot episode of "Fringe" was watched by 9.13 million viewers, garnering 3.2/9 Nielsen ratings among adults 18–49, with ratings improving over the course of the episode. The ratings improved greatly for the second episode, "The Same Old Story" which 13.27 million people watched, making it the fifth most watched show of the week. As of October 2008, the show had achieved the first place in the 18–49 demographic among new shows. Barry Garron at The Hollywood Reporter found it promising and "reminiscent of battle-of-the-sexes charm." Robert Bianco, of USA Today, said, "What Abrams brings to Fringe is a director's eye for plot and pace, a fan's love of sci-fi excitement, and a story-teller's gift for investing absurd events with real emotions and relatable characters." Travis Fickett of IGN gave it 7.6 out of 10, calling it "a lackluster pilot that promises to be a pretty good series". While Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle remarked that it was "boundlessly ambitious", Chicago Sun-Times's Misha Davenport called it an "update of The X-Files with the addition of terrorism and the office of Homeland Security". In a 2016 retrospective of the series, A.V. Club writer Joshua Alston noted that the similarities to The X-Files, including the "monster of the week" approach and tepid romance between two of the series' lead characters, as well as the relatively recent release of The X-Files: I Want to Believe, had turned audiences off the show since "it was retreading what The X-Files had already done." In its 2008 Year in Review, Television Without Pity declared Fringe one of the year's biggest TV disappointments, commenting that the show is "entertaining" and "the cast is largely strong" but the character development is insufficient, and describing main character Olivia Dunham as "wooden and distant." Meanwhile, in other articles recounting the best and worst of 2008, The New York Times stated that the show "is the best of a rash of new series that toy with the paranormal." The author goes on to praise the cast saying that "Much credit belongs to Anna Torv who stars as an F.B.I. agent investigating bizarre murders that all appear to be linked to a powerful and mysterious multinational corporation" and "Ms. Torv is backed up ably by John Noble as a crazy but brilliant fringe scientist and his level-headed but skeptical son, played by Joshua Jackson." Subsequent seasons Seasons of "Fringe" after the first season were seen as vast improvements on the first. Entertainment Weekly stated, "The best new show of the year took a few weeks to grow on me, but now it's a full-blown addiction." The Los Angeles Times called Walter Bishop one of the best characters of 2008, noting, "the role of the modern-day mad scientist could so easily have been a disaster, but the 'Fringe' writers and the masterful John Noble have conspired to create a character that seems, as trite as it sounds, more Shakespearean than sci-fi." Chicago Tribune stated that some episodes are "distressingly predictable and formulaic" but adds that there have also been some excellent episodes. The New York Times named "Fringe" one of the top 10 television shows in 2010 while Television Without Pity, previously dismissive of the show, listed it amongst their 2010 "Most Memorable TV Moments", stating "there were so many great Fringe moments this year" and "we were treated to some of the best sci-fi on television this past fall". The A.V. Club named "Fringe" the 15th best show of 2010, stated that the episode "Peter" gave "the series' overarching storyline a devastating emotional core", making the series a "rare blend of inventive ideas, wild ambition, and unexpected soulfulness". IGN named "Fringe" the 18th best science fiction show of all time in a 2011 listing, stating that since the middle of the first season, "it's been nothing but a series of satisfyingly jaw-dropping 'holy eff!' moments layered with wonderful, nuanced performances from Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson and John Noble". In 2012, Entertainment Weekly listed the show at #17 in the "25 Best Cult TV Shows from the Past 25 Years", saying, "Fringe was conceived as a mass-appeal genre procedural, with a background mythology that wouldn't detract from monster-of-the-week episodes. ... But the mythology overtook the monsters following the revelation of a parallel universe. By its third season, Fringe was overpopulated by multiple versions of every character. Unfortunately, that increasing narrative complexity has steadily pigeonholed it as a niche show." In 2015, Bustle declared "White Tulip" as "one of the greatest hours in television history". He wrote, "White Tulip is an hour of television that shouldn't work, that technically doesn't even exist ... but thank god it does, because it's one of the most powerful episodes ever created — and it showcases why Fringe is one of the most criminally underrated series of our time." Accolades "Fringe" and its cast and crew have been nominated and won several awards including Emmys, Saturn Awards, Golden Reel Awards, Satellite Awards, and Writers Guild of America Awards. Category:FOX Shows Category:2000s television shows Category:2010s television shows Category:Drama